Mum's the word: Carlisle United's Jordan Gibson reveals debut goal delight

The new signing led the Blues’ fightback against Scunthorpe with an 82nd-minute strike at the Warwick Road End.

It saw Gibson continue his bright start to life with the Cumbrians.

And he said scoring in front of his mum in Saturday's 2-2 draw had been special.

“I was delighted, and my mum came up to watch it, and she’s very proud,” the ex-Rangers and Sligo Rovers man said.

“It’s good to know that I’ve made her feel that - that’s a great feeling for me.”

Gibson marked his first start with a goal, before setting up Brennan Dickenson’s last-gasp leveller.

It means he has a goal and two assists from his first three United outings.

The 23-year-old admitted Carlisle started Saturday’s game badly and said the players let boss Chris Beech down.

But he said they must take positives from their late fightback.

“We shouldn’t be two down to begin with, to be honest, but to get a point so late on it shows good character. We have to take it and move on,” he said.

“The first half wasn’t good enough from myself or from the rest of the team.

“We know it’s not good enough, because we go out there to put on a performance. The gaffer told us before the game about having the right attitude, intensity and energy and we didn’t do that.

“That really isn’t good enough, we let ourselves down and we let the gaffer down.

Gibson prepares to shoot and score against Scunthorpe

“We had to show we had a bit about us and it was good character to do what we did.

“At 2-0 down with 10 minutes to go, I’m just pleased that I managed to get a goal and assist to help us get a point from the game.

“Overall we’re not too happy with the performance and it’s something we need to sort out.”

Gibson drilled United back into the game with an effort from the right as Carlisle desperately searched for a goal.

He said: “I had a similar position at the last home game [against Salford] but the keeper saved it, so I struck it the same way and luckily it’s gone between the defender’s legs and into the bottom corner.

“It was good to see that go in because it meant we had something to try to push forward with. Luckily we got the point in the end.”

And on his cross for the equaliser, he said: “The gaffer has told Brennan to get in at the back post and, being honest, the cross was a little too deep for what I wanted.

“Brennan did very well to get above his man and head it in. It was a good goal in the end.

“I just thought if I put a ball in the box then there will be players in there to attack it, and that’s how it went.”

Gibson said he has settled in well to life with United and is keen to make further progress with the Cumbrians.

“The first few training sessions were very hard, intense, and it took me a while to get up to speed,” said the man who joined Carlisle late in the transfer window.

“I want to play my football over in England and my family can come and watch; it’s where I want to be and I want to keep improving.

“I’m at an age where I want to showcase myself, and goals and assists are my game.

“I knew Joe Riley, Callum Guy and Kelvin Mellor before I came, and I’ve settled in really quickly. I feel like I’m part of the team now and hopefully I can really bed in.

“I’m still getting to know the gaffer’s philosophy and how he wants me to play and influence the game, but I’m feeling like I’m doing that and hopefully I can keep going.”

Gibson says he was always confident in his ability to make a quick impact for Carlisle.

“I wanted to come as soon as I found out Carlisle were interested,” he said. “I had games over in Ireland and got games and assists, and I had the confidence to come in and do that here.

“I’ve done that so far but I need to keep going.

“It’s not easy to come into a team five or six games into the season where the team is set, and you have to make an impact off the bench and prove your worth.

“I’ve got in quite early, three games in, and it’s about staying in the team now.

“We’ve got a big squad, a lot of competition, and if you don’t perform you won’t be in there. It’s all about me staying there now.”

Gibson says United’s players must produce a better performance in their next game at Sutton United – including a much better start to the game than they have produced recently.

He said: “We have to. It’s down to us as players to get this right. The gaffer and Gav [Skelton] have worked hard all week to give us the best platform to go and perform.

“It’s down to us, they can’t play for us, so we have to get it right at Sutton.”